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Iwood I was banded at TLBC and whole heartedly recommend Dr. Yau. There are a few great clinics in Canada but one of the outstanding features of TLBC is they have local support and distant support (I live in BC). You will be introduced to the TLBC support groups and they are a very friendly bunch. One of them met me at the clinic for my first fill. They also have a nutrionist/chef called Jill. She gives excellent advice. Good luck in your journey. Doddie

Yeah, I got the same bs from my family for awhile. Two days after surgery my sister goes "It doesn't seem like the surgery is working for you." Naturally I respond "Its only been two days, you dipshit." At the end of the day rude comments from family bother me less than those from aquiantances. Sent from my SM-G960U using BariatricPal mobile app

I just wanted to share my progress. I had RNY on May 19th, so not quite 3 months. I have lost 40 lbs thus far. It seems as if the weight loss has been slower than expected, but I have noticed a difference in how my clothes are fitting. I assumed my clothes would start looking better bc of the weight loss, but now have too much material in the waist area, making me look wider... I won't complain about this it gives me an excuse to go shopping. Unfortunately, my hair is changing for the worse. The texture is more straw-like, and it's noticeably falling out. At this point, I am taking Biotin, and looking into alternatives to cover this up while it re grows. Overall, I am very blessed to be able to tolerate almost every food I have tried post op. I still struggle with getting in all my proteins/fluids, but that will come I just wanted to ask-- what are some examples of Vitamin regimens y'all do? I really feel like it must be a mental thing but I Cannot stand taking pills. I tried chewable gummies Vitamins and those were getting to me disgusting to me too..Id love some examples of how people space their meds/vitamins. Here is a pic of my day of surgery, and of my current status. Thanks so much

I have done oatmeal with low carb high protein milk. Then add a scoop of either flavored protein or unflavored.. You can also do a mix of beans, mild cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, a touch of light sour cream and even add some chipotle sauce to add a little kick.. also do chicken with sourcream and some chipotle. I understand you completely as i was also getting fed up eating the same things over and over

Okay, so today is day 9 of my ten day preop diet. I have been on BC pills continuously (the active pills) for six months to keep me from having a period because I had one non stop from before Halloween to after Christmas. Today, I have had some spotting. Do y'all think this has anything at all to do with the preop diet, either the sudden calorie restriction or the diarrhea that comes along with the all liquids? (I know that when I am on my period, I tend to have diarrhea.) Or do you think it is just a coincedece? Has anyone experienced anything similar?

Hi Sunny, Nice to see someone else from Nebraska. I am still in the insurance phase. I plan on having my done either at Creighton or at UNMC here in Omaha. I talked to my insurace company and they still have not recieved my pre-auth paperwork yet. UNMC tells me check by in two weeks and if BC/BS still doesn't have it, then they will resend it. Why can't they just do it now? I guess after thinking about doing WLS for about 8 months, including the hours spent researching, I can wait a few more weeks. I just want to get things started. Hope to "hear" from ya soon,

hi this is my first day on this sight but I just found this and copied it for you Join Date: Jul 2003 Age: 45 Posts: 6,484 Abbreviations and What They Mean Weight-loss surgery, band-specific, and general medical terms: PB: "productive burp" -- what happens when something eaten can't go down due to restriction has to come back up NSV: Non-scale victory -- a weight-loss achievement that has little to do with numbers WLS: Weight-loss surgery MO: Morbid Obesity (or morbidly obese) BMI: Body Mass Index GBP: Gastric bypass surgery RNY: Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery (the most popular type of bariatric surgery) DS: Duodenal switch (another type of bariatric surgery) BP: blood pressure PCP: Primary care physician GP: General practitioner NP: Nurse practitioner PA: Physician's assistant BC: Birth control (or BCP: birth-control pills) OTC: Over the counter (i.e., non-prescription medications) NSAIDS: Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (a class of painkillers--which includes ibuprofen--bandsters should try to avoid because they can add to ulcer risk). AF: "Aunt Flo" -- menstrual period GERD: Gastro-esophageal reflux disease #/#/# in signatures: weight pre-surgery/current weight/goal weight And some general abbreviations used here and elsewhere on the web, not related to banding or weight loss: LBT: LapBandTalk.com -- this wonderful place on the web! OH: Obesityhelp.com -- another support site, with message forums BIL, SIL, ILs: Brother-in-law, sister-in-law, in-laws BTW: By the way DH: darling (or dear, or danged, or use your imagination) husband DW: darling... wife DD, DS: darling... daughter, son IMHO: In my humble opinion (and its cousin, IMNSHO: in my not so humble opinion) IIRC: If I recall correctly ISO: In search of LOL: laugh out loud OMG: Oh my God OT: Off-topic ROTFLMAO: Rolling on the floor laughing my a** off! TMI: Too much information WRT: With regard to WTF: What the f...? WTG: Way to go! YMMV: Your mileage may vary

Thanks Kayshay. Reading KathyMs post a few others that went to him make me feel better. I think alot of it is in my head. Its not just fear of the surgery but also fear of acid upset, hair loss, and loss of fav foods. I think the post are helpful but some of them scare the hell out of me. I havent told my husband about any of the side effects bc he will freak. This is tuff Im finding myself getting depressed over the whole thing. The surgery is always on my mind 24/7. Im going crazy I think!

I have a surgery date for July 28th. Documentation was submitted to insurance company ( Anthem BC/BS ) on June 26th. Doctors office said we should here by this week. Does anyone else have Anthem, and how long did it take to get approval? Very anxious! Whole process was fairly quick. Consult 5/14/08, completed all required testing, Pre-op appointment 6/26/08 with submission of documentation to insurance. Liquid diet starts 7/14/08.:thumbup:

HI Dalene You shouldn't have a problem with BC Anthem, I also have them. Although it may be different from state to state I haven't sen anyone on this blog who was refused with blue cross.....unless you have an exclusion. If you called them prior to going to physician's office they would have told you that you had the exclusion....good luck and welcome to our world.

I have been reading a lot of these post about paying out of pocket or co pays. Why is anyone paying out of pocket of the insurance covers the cost. I would go nuts if I had to pay anything additional to what my co pays have been with all these requirements. Does anyone have BC/BS PPO and live in Maryland ? I would love to know if you had to pay anything extra. I'm all types of confused. Please help me understand. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I'm sooooooo jealous of all you guys! I started at 262 sleeved on 4/10 and I'm only down to 214-218 depending. I'm eating at least 80 grams of proteins and more than enough water. I don't know what the problem is. I'm working out 6 days a week and sometimes twice a day. The only thing I can think of is maybe its my Implanon(BC) which I'm seriously considering removing. I don't know what move I can do. But I'm happy for you guys, keep up the good work.

Someone help me!! My NUT won't allow me to eat a tablespoon of coconut oil to help me go..... I take 4 tablespoons Fiber daily, I take magnesium citrate, I drink 100-120oz Water a day, I eat two yogurts a day, I have 1oz fiber food a day with dinner (all my NUT allows at this point) and i liter had the mkst excruciating poop of my life. My pouch hurt for three days bc i couldn't poop and then I pooped a the biggest I have ever done....and now one day later I have more impacted Stool. I am trying fleet enemas and the nasty ole glove and finger but I can't take going through this again. The pain is horrific.

they haven't done anything since the stent. i don't see a doctor till the 07 of april. the stent surgeon just removed the stent. tried to clip it after he removed it while he was doing the endoscopy, but said the clips didn't work. told me it wouldn't close on it's own because it's too 'fibrous'. the mexican doctor wants me on the j tube only as it's less invasive. but told me to listen to the doctors here because they know best what state my stomach is in. the stent doctor hasn't contacted me since he removed the stent even though i called his office to talk to him. he never phoned me back. my son said he's probably fed up with me for not keeping it in the whole six weeks. i don't think that's very ethical so hopefully not true.

There is aftercare but minimal is included. I will b speaking to him on the phone at one month post op. Blood work is done at 3,6 and 12 months. I went to my family doctor and she requisitioned blood work for me now bc of the transfusions. U have 2 nutritionist consults included in your fee w dr Gagner. I had the first one a week before surgery by telephone. It was an hour conversation. I did not feel rushed. The second one will b 2-3weeks post op. That one may b more helpful as iam now trying to put into practice what they sent to me on paper. I won't lie, drinking and eating at this early stage is so hard. U feel full a few sips in. It's unimaginable but totally true. So one small Protein Meal Replacement drink I bought takes an hour or more to get in. Iam constantly sipping. No straws! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I haven't had a continuous period like that, but I have been getting it twice a month like clockwork. My surgeon's office said the first 6 months toootally wack out your hormones, so any sort of weirdness is normal. My weirdness has persisted past 6 months, and my gyno thinks it's because I restarted BC. I got off of it a month before surgery and two months after because of the increased blood clot risk. Still haven't normalized, and if it continues, she'll want me to switch to another level. Your hormones really change dramatically.. Wow twice a month, I don't know which is worse going on 12 days or twice a month. Hopefully these will return to normal soon.

My docs office submitted almost 2 weeks ago and today Cigna said they didn't have all the info they needed and was going to deny when everything they said was missing WAS submitted. The nurse is resubmitting today what was missing and hoping for approval. Just BS that they say stuff is missing when it's their in front of them to hold up the process. Very frustrated. Wanted to hear accepted this week since I did all I was suppose to and all was submitted. UGGGH! No guarantees I understand even if you meet all the qualifications. Just have to pray and be patient something I am not very good at. Sue

I am eating normal food. But I feel like I'm either not eating the right food or not eating eating enough food. The food that I handle best is soft pasta but there is no protein in that at all. I just wanted to see some samples of what you guys eat through the day. I feel totally lost and am having a hard time trusting my doc's plan bc of what happened to my husband. 22 days in the hospital so far due to leak. I am also terrified that they will find one in me. We got sleeved same day and by same doctor.

@@McButterpants Yes, I agree. I should perhaps edit original post bc I think I am not asking what I want answered correctly. I am going to talk to my doc and nutritionist tomorrow (and before eating anything new) but was curious if others were as hungry as I am and craving real food this early.

BC of California paid for my surgery. Reading the posts it appears that they have a good rep for doing so... Hope that helps!

* I am in the same boat as you! I had my first fill...nothing.. second fill I got Monday, was on liquids Monday and Tuesday and today, I could barely eat a few bites of scrambled eggs without getting the stuck feeling. I was told to hold off bc I may still be a tad swollen and things may feel better in a couple days. I have 5.5cc in a 11cc band. I can drink no problem.. but if my eating continues to be 'tiny' than i may have to get a bit removed... Keep us posted how you are doing after the unfill!!

I have thought a LOT about this. I actually haven't had any friends who have sabotaged me, but I have had friend issues. One friend has become very distant from me. The weird part? He had the surgery on 12/17! I thought for sure we would be closer than ever, that both of us having the surgery would just further bound our friendship. Instead he has virtually ignored me. It has hurt me deeply and I have all sorts of negative reasons floating around in my head. But at the end of the day I suppose it is because he is on his journey and I am on mine. I also have a coworker that I got into a fight with. This person is the type of coworker that everyone hates to have. She is nosey, opinionated, a liar, and just generally not nice to be around. But over the years those of us who have to deal with her daily have tolerated her behavior for the most part, just grew thick shells. ( because upper management obviously will not do anything about her and we have to work with her) Anyway, one day a month ago I had all I could take of her. It was a particularly bad day for me (just wasn't feeling well) and I snapped. I told her off in no uncertain words. I regret I did it at work, because it was unprofessional. But I don't regret doing it. This incident made me think about how many times people who have lost weight "change". The former friends of people who have lost weight say "so and so changed". They say our attitudes change. I think it is true. I think when you are obese you tend to go out of your way to please people. We have put up with far more BS than we should. I think it is because it is how we perceive our role in friendships and relationships. There is already a strong sense of "we aren't worthy" dealing with the obesity and it transfers over to other areas of our lives. We accept less than perfect friendships because they are better than no friendships. And many put up with bad personal relationships because it beats being alone. But then that all starts to change when we decide to do something for ourselves. By having WLS we are looking out for #1 first and foremost. It is our health, our bodies, our lives. We start to shift in our perception of life as we lose weight. Suddenly what we accepted before becomes less tolerable. It is NOT ok to be the "fat friend" because we aren't anymore. People who treat us badly are no longer acceptable because we don't accept treating ourselves badly anymore. It does change us, more than just physically. So when pondering the loss of a friend after WLS just remember it is because YOU are becoming the better person. YOU are worth better!!!!

Hi, I started in August 2015 and surgery is slated for 3/1. I also have BC/BS (Federal). Because of my age (52) I had to do some additional things: Endoscopy Colonoscopy (or proof of one within last several years) Cardiac Eval Chest X-Ray Stress Test LOTS of bloodwork sleep Study (or evidence of one within ten years) Pre-Anesthesia testing (EKG, more bloodwork) Psych Eval Six months of nutrition classes (one each month-mandatory) It is quite a bit to go through. I actually found that the most stressful time for me was the almost 3 weeks it took BCBS to approve the surgery....I was going crazy thinking I might have to start all over to go to Mexico (didn't know they had different requirements). So...here I am in the early days of my pre-op diet. Keep thinking about the new me and pressing on! Hang in there, one day (or sometimes minute) at a time.

I decided on Dover bc it's the closest option I had. My other choices were Salisbury and they want $1500 for their nutritional plan. Baltimore was my next option and that was just too inconvenient for me to do all the appts. and traffic up there is horrible!! I have not been 100% on plan, but they really haven't given me a plan. The nutritional classes are pretty short and go over everything i've heard before at WW and other diets i've tried. I know the band isn't magic, and I have to work at it, but I'm having a hard time dieting at this point. I guess it's psychological, hopefully that mind set is changing as I look in the mirror and try on new clothes. I'm not happy the way I am and I know I need to change. Anyway where are you going for your surgery? What types of prerequisites do you have to do prior to surgery? That's awesome, my sister lives in PA and is shooting for a May banding also. If you don't mind me asking, why are you going out of state to have your surgery? How are you doing with the new information you've been receiving? I'm doing alright though I've had some cheating days and didn't lose as much as I know I could have this 2nd month but I'm doing good so far this last week, I keep telling myself it's mind over matter. lol

I wouldnt worry about it..I just tell others I dont eat much anymore...none in my family except my hubs knows what I had done. if it does leak out an asked alls Im saying is I had to have my tummy worked on bc the tummy hormones stopped working right..which they did! an now I finally got on the right thyroid med an its doing wonders. dont eat much anymore!